{"id":3987,"date":"2023-03-15T14:58:50","date_gmt":"2023-03-15T18:58:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/romeyn.me\/?p=3987"},"modified":"2023-03-15T15:19:21","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T19:19:21","slug":"so-much-for-simple","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/romeyn.me\/?p=3987","title":{"rendered":"So much for \u201csimple\u201d."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Last Thursday I was asked if I could be in Cambridge (Boston) on Tuesday (yesterday) for a demonstration of IBM\u2019s Cyber Range, a facility where mock security incidents are staged. \u00a0I booked a flight from the Adirondack Regional Airport, flying to Boston on Monday afternoon and returning the following afternoon. \u00a0(I had been told that flying from Massena was also possible, but their flights were sold out.) So I flew Cape Air from Saranac Lake.<\/p>\n

I got to Boston without incident. \u00a0We flew through clouds the whole way, which was boring\u2014nothing to look at! \u00a0I texted the friend with whom I would be staying. \u00a0He was house\/cat sitting just north of the city and said he would pick me up at the Oak Grove T station. \u00a0I texted him, \u201cState Street\u201d when I was on the subway and on my way up to Oak Grove. \u00a0Then something in my brain told me to check my text conversation with him in which I had worked out the details of my trip. \u00a0I had told him I needed a place to stay on TUESDAY night, not Monday! \u00a0Fortunately, he was also able to accommodate me on Monday night and happened to be home and able to meet me. \u00a0<\/p>\n

On the way to Oak Grove I checked my email. \u00a0There was a message from Cape Air informing me that my flight the following day had been cancelled. \u00a0Crap. \u00a0I had packed extremely light, having showered, shaved, and dressed just before leaving for the trip, I planned to wear everything I had the whole time and only had a change of underwear in my bag. \u00a0My friend was there waiting for me. \u00a0I got in the car, thanked him profusely, offered to buy him dinner anywhere he wanted, and then said, \u201cand since I know you have no plans for tomorrow\u2026\u201d and proceeded to tell him I\u2019d need a second night, which was fine. \u00a0(Whew!) \u00a0When we got to his friend\u2019s place I called Cape Air and talked to a very nice agent who re-booked me on their flight early Wednesday morning. \u00a0I was pleasantly surprised by the interaction. \u00a0The agent was very polite, apologetic, knowledgeable, and empowered to re-book my flight at no charge. \u00a0Wonderful!<\/p>\n

Tuesday morning my friend dropped me off at Oak Grove and I made my way into the city. \u00a0The T station nearest to IBM was about a half mile walk. \u00a0That\u2019s no problem for me on a good day, but Tuesday was not a good day. \u00a0I slogged down the streets in wind-driven, near-freezing horizontal rain. \u00a0It took me an hour to dry out once I reached IBM!<\/p>\n

While on my way to the airport I was mentally inventorying the contents of my sling bag\/purse. \u00a0I have 3 different battery packs for recharging my phone; small, medium, and large. \u00a0I had planned to bring the medium one because it can also plug right into the wall in order to recharge. \u00a0But I had forgotten it. \u00a0(I did remember to pack my multi-port charger, but it has no battery.) My phone\u2019s battery isn\u2019t what it once was and so I decided to check on its energy use to see if there was anything I could turn off that would let me eke out a few more minutes of energy before needing a charge. \u00a0Lo and behold I was told that my battery was severely degraded and needed replacement. \u00a0Since I now had time on my hands, and since there was an Apple Store in the mall around the corner from IBM, I went to see if they had a battery and could perform the installation right away. \u00a0I was stunned when I learned that the answer to both questions was \u201cyes\u201d! \u00a0It took a couple of hours, but a mall is not the worst place to spend time when the rain outside has a tendency to go up your nose!<\/p>\n

After getting my new battery I made my way to Quincy Market for a New England Clam Chowder Bread Bowl. \u00a0And that made the hassle of this trip completely worth it! \u00a0SO DELICIOUS! \u00a0I have \u201cclam\u201d chowder elsewhere, but nothing compares to what I had yesterday! \u00a0I went back to Oak Grove and my friend stopped at a place he likes for dinner and I had clams casino and a beer.<\/p>\n

When we got back to his friend\u2019s place I checked my email. \u00a0Cape Air had cancelled my morning flight! \u00a0Crap. \u00a0I let Amanda know and she asked me what I wanted to do. \u00a0I checked the Boutique Air site and they still had a flight leaving in the morning for Massena, and they had seats. \u00a0So I booked a flight with them. \u00a0If they also cancelled, then I would call Cape Air and hopefully get re-re-booked on their afternoon flight the next day. \u00a0If Boutique did not cancel, then I would request a refund from Cape Air for my return flight.<\/p>\n

Shortly after booking my 8:35am flight, I received a text and an email that it had been delayed to 9:55am. \u00a0No problem. \u00a0Then I got another text that the flight had been delayed again to 10:05. Seriously? 10 minutes? Hardly worth bothering about, right? But no\u2014I also got a phone call from a real person letting me know that my flight had been delayed!<\/p>\n

Fast forward to this morning. \u00a0I made my way to the airport and was on my way to the TSA Pre-Check line when I got a text. \u00a0Boutique was asking if I was flying with them this morning! \u00a0I said yes and then was asked if I had bags to check. \u00a0I said no and that I was in line at the security checkpoint. \u00a0They said they\u2019d see me soon. \u00a0I believe that was a real person on the other end. \u00a0When I got to the gate, I received another text that they were at the gate. \u00a0Well, I could see the gate and was actually just about to check with someone because the gate in question was labeled \u201cAir Canada\u201d. \u00a0But as I looked up I saw a couple of people putting up a temporary \u201cBoutique Air\u201d sign! \u00a0I replied to the text, \u201cso am I. \u00a0We are still departing at 10:05?\u201d \u00a0I was assured this was true. \u00a0And then a minute later, \u201cWould you please come to the gate?\u201d \u00a0They wanted me to check in! \u00a0Wow. \u00a0I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever experienced such attention to detail from customer service.<\/p>\n

I made it to Massena. \u00a0Boutiques planes are also much nicer than Cape Air\u2019s. \u00a0If ever I want\/need to go to Boston and get more time to plan, I will be flying Boutique!<\/p>\n

My takeaways from this experience:<\/p>\n